Build a measurable, operational, and investable impact model.
Our Impact Program is built on the IBMS methodology and supported by hands-on workshops, templates, and coaching to help founders define, measure, and operationalize their positive impact. The result is a credible impact business model that supports growth, investment readiness, and new sustainable product categories.
Free to join and designed for founders who want their impact to be real, measurable, and valuable.
We've designed this program in collaboration with Richard Georg Engström, founder of IBMS, investor, advisor and your future mentor.
Six-week program: March 3, 2026 - April 14, 2026
Workshops & coaching: Online (Zoom)
Final presentation: June 18th, 2026 | NEEW Ventures HQ, Berliner Str. 80-82, Berlin
Apply until: February 20, 2026
Confirmation deadline: February 24, 2026
Details
What the program does
Many startups struggle to turn sustainable intentions into measurable, operational, and credible impact. The Impact Program provides a clear structure to do exactly that. Built on the IBMS methodology, the program helps founders define the change they want to create, translate it into reliable metrics, and develop an operational business model that supports growth and investment.
Who the program is for
The program is designed for any impact-driven founder who wants to make their impact measurable and operational. It is tailored to startups working in circularity & climate-tech, with particular interest for solutions related to waste incineration, energy, CO2 capture, storage and usage, AI & industrial automation. Teams from any other sustainability-oriented fields are welcome to apply.
It is suitable for early-stage founders in the circular economy space, post-graduate researchers with impact ideas, and senior business professionals developing impact-driven concepts — but startups at any stage are welcome to apply.
What you will learn
The program follows the five core modules of the IBMS methodology. Each module ends with a concrete, operational output that strengthens your impact foundations.
Problem & Change
Identify the root causes behind the problem you aim to solve and the change your solution enables.
Outcome: A clear problem definition and change narrative anchored in real-world effects.
Impact Statement
Define your sustainable solution, its technology, and how it creates value across stakeholders.
Outcome: A validated Impact Statement describing what impact is created, for whom, and through which mechanisms.
Impact Metrics
Develop indicators, measurement methods, and data collection principles for your impact model.
Outcome: A structured set of impact metrics and a practical measurement model.
Impact Operations
Learn how to make impact operational — embedded in your product, business processes, and value propositions.
Outcome: A plan for how impact becomes part of daily operations and business outcomes.
Circular Business Model
Explore circular principles across start-of-life, product life, and end-of-life phases to design sustainable product and service systems.
Outcome: A circular business model concept aligned with your impact goals.
How it works
Five online workshops provide a step-by-step introduction to the IBMS methodology. Founders work through each module using templates and exercises, while 1-on-1 coaching sessions help adapt the tools to each startup’s context. The program concludes with the Impact Demo Day in Berlin.
Schedule
Workshops (online)
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Impact Business Model — Tue, 3 March, 10:00–14:00 CET
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Impact Metrics — Tue, 10 March, 10:00–13:00 CET
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Circular Business Model — Tue, 17 March, 10:00–13:00 CET
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Impact Operations — Tue, 24 March, 10:00–13:00 CET
Coaching sessions (online, each startup receives three 30-minute sessions)
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31 March — 10:00–17:00
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7 April — 10:00–17:00
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14 April — 10:00–17:00
Final session & presentation
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Demo Day — Thu, 18 June, 09:00–19:00 CEST
At NEEW Ventures HQ in Berlin during the Circularity Hub Summer Pitch Event.
Onboarding
To ensure the best possible starting point, participating teams are asked to submit:
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their latest pitch deck (two weeks before the first session)
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a one-page overview of their maturity stage (proof of tech, concept, or business)
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a short note about their intended sustainable impact
Past Cohorts
The impact story that we developed helped us to communicate better with potential investors.
Nura
from PLENO
The sessions took us step by step from the problem to the solution and how best to quantify impact.
Kristina
from Kompotoi
FAQ
Yes. NEEW Ventures covers all program costs. Participants only cover their own travel to Berlin for the Impact Demo Day.
Any impact-driven founder working on solutions in circularity, climate-tech, waste management, energy, or AI-for-environment. We are open to all maturity stages. You can apply as a solo founder or with a team. This includes: early-stage impact start-up founders, post-grad students with an impact idea backed by their research, senior business professionals with an impact-driven concept.
Up to 12 startups will join the cohort to ensure high-quality coaching and feedback.
Workshops and coaching sessions take place online (Zoom).
The Impact Demo Day is held onsite at NEEW Ventures HQ in Berlin.Each startup spends approximately 24.5 hours in workshops and coaching, plus optional time for applying the IBMS tools.
Yes. All IBMS tools, worksheets, and templates needed to build your Impact Business Model v1.0 are included.
Attendance of all workshops, completion of exercises between sessions, participation in three coaching sessions, and in-person presence at the Impact Demo Day in Berlin.
Startups stay connected to the Circularity Hub community and may be invited to follow-up activities, visibility opportunities, or collaboration formats.
